Graham said to me earlier today, “you’ve got a real soft spot for chintzy big swing fantasy”, and what can I say? The man is correct. Hence, though I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in open world survival crafting games like yer Valheims and what have you, I cocked my head like a dazzled magpie at the Gamescom release date trailer for Nightingale. It’s the chintzy big swing fantasy (okay, Victoriana urban fantasy but it still counts) coming from Aaryn Flynn-founded studio Inflexion Games. And it’s coming to an early access release near you on February 22nd next year.
Look I know it has flying umbrellas and airships and waistcoats, and really I should hate it, but also you can build a villa on the shores of a blue lake, surrounded by red and white trees. There are monsters that look like a dinosaur fucked an elephant, and others that look like VanderMeer specials, and there are big lovely giants who sort of look pleased to see you. And others that look very angry to see you.
For all that Edders and CJ (RPS in peace) have written about Nightingale before, and for all that it sounds like exactly the sort of game that I would hate to actually play, at least this has goddamn style, at least this is actually doing something – which is more than you can say for a lot of glitzy games I see cross Geoff’s cursed stage. Games can do anything, and for Inflexion that includes Rococo Mr. Tumnus. I can only respect the hell out of them for it. I will get it and play it for exactly an hour, before getting upset at survival crafting all over again. That will be, as aforementioned, February 22nd 2024, on Steam and the Epic Games Store.
Gamescom 2023 has arrived, and you can find all the latest news and previews from the show floor in our Gamescom 2023 hub.
